[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Glut7g1TWhQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&] 3 Billion dollars worth of software management is going into the EU FutureFarm project. Here’s the scoop on this standardized farm management information system: This short film, first presented at Agritechnica 2009, shows the concept developed within the EU FP7 project “FutureFarm” for a service-oriented architecture for delivering knowledge about farm management and crop [...]

Says the folks responsible for that future: Manipulation is the key issue for robotics to apply to the agricultural industry,” said Jeff Legault, associate director of business development at the National Robotics Engineering Center, Carnegie Mellon University. Creating robots with the ability to harvest produce as quickly and gently has humans won’t be possible for [...]

Lots of great tidbits from Paleo-Future, including: Superfarm in the year 2020 Epcot’s The Future World of Agriculture 1984 1983′s Our Future Needs (World of Tomorrow)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KAQa_I0Vxc&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&feature=player_embedded&fs=1] Although the focus of this site is exploring agricultural robots, we will definitely make room for some sweet, sweet robot butlers. <blockquote>CMU’s Snackbot is a roving wheeled ‘bot who’s primary purpose is to roam the halls of the University’s buildings, delivering tasty treast to students and faculty. Snackbot not only drives around bringing snacks, [...]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfNBlB32TGM&hl=en&fs=1&] Traditional industrial agriculture relies on large scale application of pesticides that work hand in hand with genetically modified crops. Researchers at Oklahoma State University have developed a soil sensing mechanism that deploys site-specific amounts of chemicals. To quote the short film: This is precision agriculture at it’s best. The environment is spared unnecessary spraying [...]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTz1MAasQq8&hl=en&fs=1&] One of the many challenges in imagining how robotics can aid organic farming is the question of Why. Why should technologies intervene in age-old production techniques? Isn’t modern organic farming a direct response and alternative to industrial food production? These are great questions, and ones that I am sure this project will have to [...]

Students in Bolivia prototyped a robot they designed to help indigenous farmers moderate their soil chemicals. Reports the University of New Mexico: Sergio ValencÍa Cordova, Rodrigo López and Sergio Saavedra from the Universidad Privada Boliviana presented their automated agricultural robot as part of the student competition at the Ibero-American Science and Technology Education Consortium (ISTEC) [...]